Last I posted, it was Canada Day long weekend and we had just found out that 5 of our fertilized eggs had made it through freezing. Since I was so overstimulated after the egg retrieval, we were not able to transfer any of the embryos then and there. Which meant I would have to spend more time dealing with hormones and getting my body ready for the transfer.

This was new territory for me. I had spent so much time taking needles and working on getting those eggs to grow that I really had no clue what was supposed to happen next. All I knew was that I was to wait for my period and then we would go from there.

I was told it could take up to two weeks after the egg retrival for aunt flo to show up but to my surprise, the morning they called to tell me how many blayocysts had frozen was when she came! I was very happy because one thing you will learn about infertility is everything is time; waiting for the next doctors appointment and the right times, and so on and so forth. This just saved us an extra week and brought us even closer to the transfer!

Let’s start off with a quick update because I know it’s been just over a month since my last post – July was so busy – and people are very curious to know where things stand and how the retrieval went.

In my last post I was talking about how over stimulated I was and that my ovaries were literally the size of oranges. Due to that, we unfortunately were not able to go forward with an embryo transfer this cycle because if I were to become pregnant I would have gone into a severe state of OHSS and would have likely been hospitalized and in even more pain. The good news? We did remove lots of eggs, had a bunch fertilize and after 6 days of growing, we were able to freeze 5 healthy embryos.

As for the egg retrieval process itself, well, it was not quite what I expected it to be. I assumed I would go in very anxious but by time the day came I was quite calm. I was ready for the pressure I was feeling from my giant ovaries to be over but boy, I had no idea what I was in for.

Last I updated, I was waiting for my period to start so I could begin my injections for our first round of IVF. Well it’s been over a week and a half since I started my needles and I can say that I’m getting very close to having my egg retrieval. I know this not only because of what the doctors are telling me (obviously) but because of how I can feel my ovaries with every step I take. Thanks to my PCOS and the amount of follicles I have developing, my ovaries are literally the size of oranges.

So some people I have talked to since opening up about what we are going through don’t fully understand what my body will be going through with IVF. They know its the ‘test tube baby’ but they are not completely sure how we get to that stage. So here is a quick ‘Amber’ version of what I am currently going through and what is to come in the next week.

It’s been a few weeks since my last post. Thank you to everyone who has stopped me and said a kind word and for your prayers and well wishes. You are all part of a wonderful support system for hubby and I and we truly appreciate you all as we begin our next chapter.

If you’ve been following our story then you know DH and I are onto the next step in our fertility journey; IVF. Earlier this year we were referred to the Regional Fertility Program (RFP) in Calgary. Thankfully our wait wasn’t too long, less than 3 months and we were headed up to Calgary for our initial appointments.

It’s finally here, Part 4, the final chapter in our infertility story to catch you up to where we are now.

In September 2016 I had ovarian drilling surgery in the hopes of lowering my testosterone levels and getting my ovaries to respond better to the medications. After weeks of healing, in late October, I was headed back to see Dr. P. The only way to know if the surgery was successful was to do another super cycle IUI and see how my body reacted. We also discussed with Dr. P what the plan would be if nothing had changed and my body over stimulated again. He was always so positive that we would get pregnant. His plan this time, if we were up for it and were faced with cancelling again, was to take me in and do a follicle reduction surgery in the hopes of saving and preforming the IUI. But first things first was to see how I would react to the meds.

There are a lot of details to cover in our 2 year journey to conceive and this is Part 3 of our story. If you haven’t had a chance yet, make sure you check out Part 1 and 2.

So to catch you up, by the end of June 2016, I had been diagnosed with PCOS and we had already tried 2 cycles of Clomid, 2 cycles of Femara, and one IUI using Femara and Menopur; all of which ended with zero pregnancies. I was feeling pretty defeated but was trying my hardest to stay positive that one of these cycles would work and we would finally become parents.

Welcome to Part 2 of our story. If you’re new to the blog and haven’t read Part 1 yet, you can do that here.

Horror. Shock. Dismay. All the things I felt immediately after receiving the news that I had PCOS and how we would have to work that much harder to get pregnant. Dr. P was very kind though and took the time to explain what all this meant and outlined the path we would take. He never doubted that it would happen for us and his unwavering support helped replace some of the negative feelings I was having with hope. Hope of what was to come, hope the upcoming treatment would work, and hope that eventually we would be parents.

Welcome to my first blog post! This blog is going to be my way of sharing the journey we are taking in the hopes of expanding our family. But before I can continue the story, you should probably know who we are and where we have been.